5/14/2004: Hello this is Ryan Waters, one
of the leaders with the SummitClimb.com team at ABC on the north side of Mount
Everest. As Dan reported earlier most of our logistics are in place and our
team, along with all the other teams, are impatiently waiting for a good
weather window to make a summit push. Each day the rumor mill starts up and we
hear conflicting weather reports, some predicting good weather to come, while
the next predicts snow storms. Many members have taken the opportunity to
catch a land cruiser or turnip truck down to any number of small towns in
Tibet to take advantage of the lower altitudes, change in food, or one of the
Tibetan discos that are sure to provide interesting entertainment. After
returning to Chinese Base Camp, people enjoy the relative comfort of BC,
before once again making the trek up to intermediate base camp. Here our
committed cook Sangay has been quick to serve up a bowl of "RA RA" noodles and
to fend off the countless Tibetan yak herders trying to poach food from our
camp! As I report this, most members are in ABC watching the weather, climbing
higher on the mountain or making a game plan for a summit attempt. Troy,
Felix, Arnold, and Tim S. are down in BC taking a final rest before coming
back up for the last time. It has been a long expedition and people are
remaining patient. The distance between Base Camp and ABC is long and the
members are trying to stay high, climbing up through the high camps and hoping
to get a shot at the summit soon. I plan on climbing high on the mountain for
the next few days watching the weather, acclimatizing in the highest camps and
hopefully making a summit attempt very soon. Thanks for all of the support
from EverestNews.com, friends, family and sponsors. From all of us here at the
SummitClimb.com Advanced Base Camp this is Ryan Waters saying we hope to have
some interesting news for you soon.